


More than Coincidence

by ArchangelEquinox



Series: Once More to the Breach [5]
Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Pre-Relationship, Romantic Fluff, Skyhold, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-26 09:47:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9884258
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArchangelEquinox/pseuds/ArchangelEquinox
Summary: The Inquisitor and the Commander spend an afternoon stalking the other, even though they'd never admit it.





	

Though she’d never admit it to anyone, Talia had the Commander's schedule memorized. 

Cullen trained with his soldiers every morning, took a run and then a quick bath before eating with his lieutenants at midday, and by early afternoon, he was usually holed up in meetings or with reports.  Mid-afternoon, he walked the battlements or completed short errands, often to run reports to her quarters or inspect new gear at the blacksmith.  About two days a week, he played chess with Dorian before dinner, and on the other days, he either conducted short meetings with Leliana and Josephine or had some actual time to himself. 

Talia ran through the afternoon in her head, blushing as she realized just how stalker-ish her attention to his schedule appeared.  Whenever she had the time, she put herself in Cullen's path -- doing forms on the battlements, playing pranks with Sera to interrupt meetings, 'supervising' training -- and basically doing whatever she could to nurture her crush without making herself too obvious.  Dorian had laughed at her 'supervision' one morning, commenting that perhaps she ought to actually watch someone other than the Commander, and she'd thought she would burst into embarrassed flames on the spot. 

Lately, though, it seemed like Cullen was in her path more often as well.  She'd be holed up in the library reading and glance up to find the Commander browsing the same stacks she was in, or find him lingering on the second floor of the tavern as she came in for lunch.  Thus far, she wasn’t sure those encounters were anything more than coincidence, but each time, he had wanted to stay and talk with her, discussing tactics or books or, once, their lives before the Inquisition.  She could certainly hope it was more than coincidence. 

But today, she hadn't seen him since before lunch, and then only from a distance as he jogged through Skyhold's portcullis after his run through the valley.  He had not made an appearance in the Herald’s Rest for the meal after that, nor had she run into him later when she swung by to see Cole. 

The Commander was a busy man: he knew his recruits by name and trained with them daily, wrote reports and letters far into the night, organized every soldier of the Inquisition's growing army, and delegated far too little of his monstrous workload.  His meetings ran long and he always seemed to be hurrying when Talia saw him in passing.  Missing a single meal, or neglecting to find her for a conversation, was not unusual.  He'd done nothing but work since their arrival at Skyhold several months earlier, and Talia would not have been surprised if he’d fallen asleep at his desk. 

That didn’t change that she missed him, but she’d never admit it. 

\---

Cullen would never admit it, but he knew the Inquisitor’s schedule by heart, minimal as it was.  She was up early most days to practice her daggers on the training dummies before anyone could see, and she enjoyed an easygoing breakfast with Dorian and Varric in the Great Hall.  Meetings with various nobles and then catching up on reports with Leliana took most of her morning after that, but lately she’d been making time to supervise the soldiers’ training in the yard as well.  If Cassandra was present, the two might spar to demonstrate concepts for the newest recruits, something Cullen greatly enjoyed even if his gruff exterior might suggest otherwise.   

She usually escaped away from her advisors before lunch, only reappearing in the tavern at the midday bells.  As of yet, he hadn’t been able to figure out where she went, but he knew the Inquisitor had precious little free time; if she wanted to spend it alone, so be it.  The tavern was always raucous with her presence, as Iron Bull, Dorian, Sera, and others of her inner circle usually joined her.  Lately Cullen had been putting in an appearance over lunch as well, and Talia was always more than happy to scoot down the bench to make room for him beside her.  Today though, he’d missed her.  By the time he got back from his run, he was in more withdrawal pain than usual, his joints aching and his breathing heavy.  His bath had taken longer as a result -- his worn-down body didn’t want to cooperate enough for him to work out the cramps in his calves and he’d been forced to refill the tub multiple times with hot water before the muscles released. 

The Inquisitor’s afternoons were less organized, and Cullen pondered, not for the first time, if trying to put himself in her path was a wasted effort.  She sometimes sat with Dorian to discuss texts and Solas to pinpoint elvhen ruins, and two days a week, Krem trained her in the afternoons.  If Josephine caught her, she was forced into reading reports and writing letters for hours on end; on those days that Talia didn’t escape the Ambassador’s clutches, Cullen always made an effort to visit her under the guise of bringing her reports.  The Inquisitor was always relieved to throw aside her quill at his appearance, but he wondered how much of that attention was related to him as opposed to just her reluctance to work.    

Often Talia vanished after lunch in an attempt to avoid such Inquisitorial duties, and on those days, Cullen could rarely find her between his own meetings and responsibilities.  Her afternoons were such a hodgepodge of activities that in his few free moments, he often couldn’t begin to locate her.  Some days he ran into her doing forms while he patrolled the battlements, and lately Solas had been pointing her out in the library when the Commander came walking through the keep.  But most days he was left as he was now: unsure where she was or how she felt, nursing a crush, and desperate to see her, if only for a moment. 

He just didn’t want to admit it. 

\---

The afternoon was starting to wane when Talia finally spotted the Commander as he made his way down the back stairs from the kitchen.  From her position on the roof of the stables, it should have been hard to tell who the figure was, but she’d recognize that blonde hair anywhere. 

She pushed herself up and eyed the gap between the stable wall and the battlements, wondering if it was too far to jump.  Probably not a good idea, to be safe.  Instead, she swung herself over the eaves before dropping to the ground and hurried across the yard to intercept him, ignoring that nagging voice in the back of her mind that asked if she recognized him because he was the Commander, or because he was Cullen. 

She knew the answer – she just didn’t want to admit it. 

Before she could compose herself enough to wave or call out, she saw him see her.  A smile bloomed across that stern face, the scar on his mouth pulling one corner up as he raised a hand in greeting. 

“Commander!”  She called, waving as she felt her smile answer his.  “It’s good to see you.” 

“And you, Inquisitor,” he replied as he stopped in front of her.  “I’ve been—”

“—looking for you,” she finished, and though he blushed, that lopsided grin didn’t lessen.  “You weren’t in your office.”  He gave her a curious look, his mouth curling into a smirk when she blushed.  Shit. 

“I missed lunch earlier,” he explained.  “By the time I got to the tavern, you were… everyone, I mean, was gone.” 

They each studied the ground for a moment, both caught in their search for the other. 

“I, ah,” Talia attempted, but Cullen spoke first. 

“You, um, have straw in your hair,” he said. 

“What?”  That wasn’t what she’d been expecting him to say.  Granted, she didn’t know that she wanted him to say anything – more grab her and kiss her until she couldn’t remember her name.  That probably wasn’t going to happen.

The Commander shook his head, his throat bobbing as he swallowed, and reached for her.  Before she could stop herself, she’d reached up too, their fingers colliding just before he touched her.  She could feel something rough in her hair with her fingertips, but they weren’t obeying her orders to move anymore; instead, she could hardly feel anything except the soft leather of Cullen’s gloves.  He hesitated too, hand cupped gently around hers. 

She looked up to find him watching her, pupils wide and dilated as he stared.  

“Sorry,” she murmured, drawing her hand away from her scalp slowly, dragging against his palm, the urge to close the little space between them burning low and hot in her belly. 

“Quite all right,” he said, eyes shifting away to study his fingers as they settled against her head. His thumb brushed the shell of her ear, and she tried not to shiver.  “May I?” 

Talia nodded. 

His fingers worked cautiously through her hair, his eyes following their path as he tried to unknot the debris from the mess atop her head.  She belatedly realized she should have at least smoothed it down when she jumped to see him. 

It didn’t matter; in moments, he had it free, and she was already missing his touch when he stepped closer.  Those gentle fingers combed out her hair, brushing through the strands only to curl them under her ear.  His face reddened as his hand came to rest along her neck, but he didn’t pull away, only shifted his gaze to meet her eyes. 

“You are so…” he began.  Talia held her breath, waiting, as she could practically see him second-guessing himself before he cleared this throat.  His gaze dropped as he removed his hand, gloved fingertips dragging along her skin briefly before he held out a piece of straw to her.  “Here.” 

She took it without thinking, not sure how to process the sudden change in mood.  Their hands, however, slid together in a far more intimate exchange than strictly necessary.  “Thank you.”  What had he been about to say? She didn’t know how to ask, didn’t know how to break the strange silence that had settled over them. 

“I missed you today,” she blurted out instead.

Cullen looked up.  Where his face had gone stern again, it softened into a real smile, one that lit up his eyes and smoothed the lines from his forehead.  “You did?” 

Talia didn’t reply, only nodded and smiled back.  They were staring again, each grinning like a fool at the other and oblivious to the tableau they made in the middle of the courtyard.  

“I missed you as well,” Cullen ventured at last.  On impulse, Talia squeezed his hand where they still touched, and he startled and dropped their grip.  The straw went tumbling to the ground.  “Maker’s breath, I apologize, I --”

“You don’t have to,” she interrupted, breathless.  “I… don’t mind.”  She didn’t want him to think she didn’t like him somehow.  Nothing could have been further from the truth. 

Instead he smiled again, that quirk of his lips that she was growing far too attached to.  A long moment passed between them where Talia smiled back and resisted stepping closer.  They were already hardly a breath apart; any further, and they’d be chest to chest, enough to hug or kiss or…

Cullen cleared his throat and dropped his gaze.  Bringing one hand up, he rubbed the back of his neck and studied their boots.  “I… have a meeting with Leliana to attend, but…” 

“Oh.”  Maybe she’d misread something.  She moved back half a step and glanced away.  “I saw her earlier, they’re sending me to the Graves soon, and --”

“Play chess with me,” he said abruptly, voice rough.  “Please.” 

Her heart leapt in her chest. “I’d like that,” she managed, upcoming mission forgotten. 

“Me too,” he answered quietly.  For a split second, his hand flinched out like he might reach for her again, and her breath caught.  Then he seemed to catch himself and instead pressed his fist to his heart. 

Talia nodded, fighting to keep her smile steady and not start giggling or blushing or anything else.  She hadn’t misunderstood, not at all. 

He nodded back and turned to go, always punctual, never late, and Talia couldn’t help herself.  “Cullen?” 

He spun.  “Talia?”  His eyes went wide as he blushed. “I mean, Inquisi—” he began but she shook her head slightly, trying to hide how her pulse leapt hearing her name from his lips.  Across the courtyard, she saw his mouth curve in the barest hint of a smile.  "No," he said softly, almost to himself.  "Talia." 

"Cullen," she repeated, taking a step toward him.  "It’s… I’m glad I ran into you."  It wasn't what she'd meant to say, but the way his scar twitched made it worth it. 

"I um."  He stopped and glanced away, shaking his head a little before he met her eyes.  "I always look forward to seeing you."  The words rushed out, like he had to force them through a closed and nervous throat, and she thought her chest might burst with sudden joy. 

"Me too," she managed, knowing she was as red as he and not caring.  "Me too." 

They smiled at each other for another long moment before Cullen bobbed his head and swallowed. 

"I… have to go," he explained.  "Inquisitor."  He raised his hand in a fumbling wave goodbye before he turned and jogged up the stairs to the keep.

"Commander," she answered though she knew he couldn't hear her anymore.  For a moment she wished she could spin around and tumble into the grass like a love-struck teenager. 

She wasn’t wrong.  There was something between them, even if neither knew how to admit it. 

 


End file.
